Frenkie de Jong: La Liga expert issues ‘huge’ Man United claim as £51.3m bid submitted
Kevin Campbell has insisted Barcelona star Frenkie de Jong would be a “huge” upgrade on the current midfield options at Man United.
The former Arsenal striker and La Liga TV pundit, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, claimed Erik ten Hag has identified the 25-year-old as a top target after analysing his new side.
According to The Guardian (10 June), Man United have had an opening bid for Frenkie de Jong of €60million (£51.3million) plus €10million (£8.5million) rejected by Barcelona.
The report claims Barcelona would be willing to sell the former Ajax man for a fee of €85million (£72.6million) this summer despite the player’s reluctance to leave the Nou Camp.
De Jong, who has 42 caps for the Netherlands, notched four goals and five assists in 47 games during the 2021-22 campaign.
He is under contract at Barcelona until June 2026.
Campbell backed De Jong to be a “huge part” of Ten Hag’s rebuild.
“He’s a very good player,” he told Football Insider‘s Ewan Kingsbury.
“He’s quality. When you look at Man United’s midfield, and then you look at Frenkie de Jong – it’s a huge step up.
“I think Ten Hag knows what he needs and what he wants. He’ll have watched a lot of footage and done a lot of analysis of Man United and realised that the midfield isn’t good enough.
“He’s making move, and De Jong could be a huge part of this rebuild.”
Ten Hag managed De Jong at Ajax and oversaw the midfielder’s first-team breakthrough during the 2017-18 season.
Man United will play Europa League football during the 2022-23 campaign.
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